


Bound In

by Narimiri



Series: Entangled [2]
Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Background Shizuona, Blood and Gore, Detectives, Gen, Horror, I havent yet but watch me, Nightmares, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, People are going to die, Suffering, Trauma, Watch me reference shizuos character song like 60 times jesus fuck, Wheelchair Izaya
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-07-07
Packaged: 2019-04-18 07:07:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14207790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narimiri/pseuds/Narimiri
Summary: It's like he chases him....After two years of so called "peace", Shizuo finds himself face to face with a liar. A liar whose real name can't be anything but Orihara Izaya.Not knowing what Orihara wants from him is genuinely horrifying, honestly more so than knowing would be. He thinks he's ready for the worst that cockroach could throw at him.But then again... This is Orihara we're talking about.





	1. Bad Memories

_ The monster lives, and he's going to come for me. He's going to come charging for me like a bull at someone brandishing a red cloak, like a hunting dog for their target~ _ __   
__   
__   
_ The monster is coming, and I've never been so excited. _   
  
  
An alarm blares at 5:00 A.M., and its owner sits up in bed with too much force for that time of day, taking a moment to glance over the woman asleep on the other side of the bed, non-fiction book of some form resting on her chest and reading glasses for late at night perched crooked on her nose.    
  
  
Shizuo smiles tiredly. Knowing Vorona, she only fell asleep maybe two hours ago. He steps out of bed and stretches, rubbing his forehead when he recalls his dream from around 1:00 to the 3:00 A.M..   
  
  
The same damned dream he's had at the same damned time of night since the winter of two years ago. About two weeks, a little less actually 12 days, before Christmas, while most of Japan was happy, Shizuo had been injured.   
  
  
Injured in a case he couldn't help but undertake.   
  
  
Back when he still worked for the Ikebukuro Police Department, Shizuo had dealt with a certain Mr. Orihara Izaya. Orihara had very obviously been the killer in a series of gruesome murders. The murders of Kida Masaomi, Ryuugamine Mikado, and...    
  
  
Shizuo's brain refuses to finish that thought. There was one other victim though. He trudges slowly to the bathroom, hands stuffed in the pockets of his sweatpants. He looks into the discolored mirror.   
  
  
Dark circles under his eyes, chapped lips in a thin line, stubble barely starting to grow on his chin. The dark brown roots of his hair peer through the blond, but he can't be bothered to waste money from the tight budget he and Vorona are on on something useless like a monthly bottle of hair dye. This is an appearance he's used to, so all he does to remedy it is shower quick and brush his teeth quicker.   
  
  
Shizuo trudges to the kitchen next, grabbing the milk from the fridge, and pouring himself a glass. He hates coffee....    
  
  
He deposits the milk jug in the fridge, and scribbles "buy milk" on his hand with a pen, walking to the kitchen table.   
  
  
He sits with his glass, opening up his old, battered laptop. There's a chat notification popped up in the left-hand corner of the screen.    
  
  
"Chrome would like to chat!" The notification proudly announces.   
  
  
_ Chrome _ . Chrome is... An anomaly, to be honest. An informant who works only by chat, whose gender Shizuo can only guess. From mannerisms, he guesses female, but from described appearance, male. Roughly five feet, eight inches tall, blue eyes, short black hair. Chrome jokes about being "Forever Twenty-one!", saying they got the joke from a celebrity.   
  
  
That celebrity would be a certain Orihara Izaya. Chrome was evidently fascinated by him, and believes in the popular net conspiracy theory that Orihara was murdered and his fortune taken.   
  
  
Shizuo sighs and accepts Chrome's chat request.   
  
  
_ Heiwa has entered the chatroom. _ __   
__   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Finally~! ♡ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Shizuo-san is slower than snail mail. _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ it's five A.M., Chrome.  _ __   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ what information do you have that you had to send right here right now? _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Weeellllll~~!! _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ This isn't pertaining to any of Shizuo-san's cases, buuuut!! _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ spit it out so I can eat breakfast in peace _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Uwwwaaah!!　(；´Д｀) Shizuo-san is scary in the morning!!! _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Anyways, _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ I hear rumor that Orihara Izaya-sama didn't die, and that he's in hiding because of an attempted MURDER. _   
  
  
Shizuo does a double take. To get Chrome believing Orihara didn't die, it must be an insane rumor.    
  
  
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ and? is he here or some shit? _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Shizuo-san must be psychic :0 My my, a psychic detective.... _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Supposedly he could be in a small town, recuperating from injuries. And one of the possible towns in the theory is is the one you and Vorona-san live in. _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ im going to look into this later. thanks, chrome. _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Wow, even in chat I can tell Shizuo-san is determined! _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ please shut up chrome.  _ __   
__   
__   
_ Heiwa has exited the chatroom. _   
  
  
Shizuo groans. Chrome can't take fucking anything seriously, but they're useful. Orihara came here...   
  
  
But... Why? Did he know Shizuo was here?!   
  
  
Something wet is dripping down his hand, and he glances down, seeing his shattered glass dripping milk onto the already dirty floor.   
  
  
He sighs, and cleans it up minimally, trying to push thoughts of Orihara from his mind. Thoughts of him bring thoughts of the victims and of...   
  
  
"Kasuka...." He chokes out, chest aching like the planet sits atop it. He shudders, fighting back an onslaught of tears and nausea at a visual he's tried to block out for two years.   
  
  
He forces himself to stand straight again, and walks into the bedroom, where Vorona still sleeps, and sleeps hard. He dresses himself, and tucks his cellphone, a little device a much too happy shade of orange, into his back pocket, before heading out.    
  
  
It's drizzling a bit today... Most days it is. Shizuo smiles a little, but the brief cheer is wiped off his face by that unmistakable feeling of being watched by someone you know. Paranoid, he looks around, gaze fluttering around the streets till he momentarily locks eyes with the person who he knows was watching him.   
  
  
A man in his late twenties in a wheelchair with shoulder length black hair in a short ponytail, and...   
  
  
Those  _ eyes _ ....   
  
  
Red as hellfire, the man's gaze latches onto him, and he can't move a muscle.... His mouth goes dry, and the look in those damn eyes.    
  
  
Like a stumbling puppet, Shizuo staggers across the street. The man sits in the park, accompanied by a tired looking woman with dark hair and dark eyes. She seems just a little familiar too....   
  
  
This is wrong, why is Orihara here? To kill him? To try and lead him off on more murders?   
  
  
"Can I help you?" The man's tone is amused. Unmistakably Orihara....   
  
  
Shizuo breathes deep, he can't just blurt out who this man is. He'd be brushed off as a paranoid maniac... He is becoming one, but not to the point he'd just scream a seemingly random person was a murderer in the middle of town. He sighs, and shakily says,   
  
  
"I..I'm sorry, you looked familiar for a minute there. 'Guess I might as well ask your name...."   
  
  
He hates social interaction, and this is ten times worse.   
  
  
"Okawa Nakura, it's a pleasure," The liar smiles, "And this is my assistant, Namie."   
  
  
The woman seems to bristle, and only says, "Pleasure," in a curt tone.   
  
  
"Y-yeah, nice to meet you. Heiwajima Shizuo," Shizuo can tell they're aware of his discomfort. He's not sure if Orihara, or "Okawa", knows he's figured out his identity on sight. There's no way he didn't. Orihara was, and most likely still is, a sharp bastard.   
  
  
The woman seems familiar too, but he can't quite place her in his memories....   
  
  
He stands straight, hands stuffed in his pockets, and mutters, "'Should be going...." Before scuttling off like a dog with its tail between its legs.    
  
  
He ducks off into an alley once he's out of their line of vision, broken glass cracking under his feet. He presses a hand to his pounding chest, staring straight forward at the brick wall of a building that makes up the alley until his vision will focus again.    
  
  
He digs into his pocket, pulling out a little blue and white box. Cigarettes. He takes one out, lighting it with a heavy, weighted sigh.   
  
  
He feels a brief buzz, before a slow wave of synthetic calm as he breathes in the nicotine. He only allows himself one cigarette at a time, he's trying to cut back, but it really doesn't work.    
  
  
He puts thoughts of cutting back away in his mind as he tosses the dead cigarette into a trash can, resuming his slow walk to work.   
  
  
Work is okay.... He works 80% alone, but his senpai, a friendly-faced man named Tanaka Tom, helps him out still if he needs it.   
  
  
Shizuo can barely focus on work today, thoughts of why Orihara is  _ here  _ running rampant in place of thoughts of work. He absently jots down theories and notes in a web of attempting to comprehend it all.   
  
  
This mess is only just spiraling down, and already Shizuo feels the way he did at the midpoint of the Orihara case....    
  
  
He thinks back to his recurring nightmare, the one he's had since he woke up in the hospital after his fight with Orihara.   
  
  
__ He's running after a shadowed and mocking figure that's splattered with blood, that laughs at him as he tries to catch it, firing his gun aimlessly. No matter where his shot lands, if it hits the figure or passes it by, the figure will just laugh, pleased cries of "Monster!" meeting his ears as he runs through an infinite expanse of snow surrounded by iron gates.   
  
  
Shizuo snaps out of his thoughts with a violent shudder. He tries to push thoughts of the dream from his head before he starts feeling sick. Suddenly there's a knock on his door.   
  
  
"Come in...." He sighs heavily.   
  
  
Two teenage girls enter his office, most likely third years. The one standing front and center has long brown hair in a braid, glasses, and wears a middle schooler's uniform. The girl behind her has shorter hair of the same color, and she's dressed in one of those old style gym uniforms you only see in manga nowadays.    
  
  
"Greetings, Heiwajima Shizuo-san~" The glasses-wearing girl says with a grin, a grin awfully reminiscent of Orihara's....   
  
  
For once something prioritizes itself over Orihara, and that's just why a couple of teenagers are here, presumably to have him undertake a case.    
  
  
"What do you kids want?" He asks, low on patience in case it's a prank.    
  
  
".....Brother...... searching...... burn....." The girl in the gym outfit murmurs.   
  
  
"What Kuru-nee means is, we're looking for our dear dear elder brother-- well, half brother-- so we can send him off to hell like he deserves," The first girl is cheerful for someone talking about murdering someone.   
  
  
"This isn't a joke?" Shizuo confirms, a flat expression unmoving on his face.   
  
  
"Oh oh no, definitely not! We wouldn't kid about how much we want him dead!" The girl steps closer to his cluttered desk, her footsteps loud and hard.    
  
  
"God.... Fucking kids...." Shizuo can't help but sigh. He doesn't mind kids, but this bullshit just makes him annoyed in more ways than it should. "What is your brother's name then?" He'll amuse them, mostly just so he can teach them a (thankfully verbal) lesson about telling shitty lies.   
  
  
"Orihara Izaya," The girl states firmly with a grin on her face.   
  
  
Shizuo feels like his body has just shut down.


	2. And So, it Begins Again....

_ So Hei-chan knows I'm alive, does he? Poor stupid thing probably was convinced he killed me. Ah, that look on his face when he saw me was priceless, I would love to see that look again.... _ __   
__   
__   
_ Considering his latest profession choice, I think it'd be rather easy to bring that expression over him again~ _ __   
__   
__   
_ Hei-chan most likely wanted to be a detective so he could help people... Well I'm going to show him just how meaningless that is in the long run of human life.... _   
  
  
Shizuo feels his mouth go dry. These girls who come randomly came traipsing into his office just so happen to be related to that... that scumbag. "I'm sorry girls, I can't help you," He says flatly and heavily.   
  
  
"We have money," The glasses-clad girl says, with a sly grin.   
  
  
"Lots of people do, kid. Doesn't mean I'm going to lead you to someone so you can kill him," Shizuo sighs, rubbing his temples with his hands.   
  
  
"Know.... Doesn't he...?" The shorter haired girl mumbles, basically impossible to understand due to her quiet tone.    
  
  
"Detective Heiwajima-san, you know Izaya-nii, don't you?" The particularly Izaya-like girl smiles a wicked smile.   
  
  
Shizuo tenses, hand gripping the arm of his chair. Fuck, this kid is smart. He glances around the room, feeling vaguely sick to his stomach. "How would you know that...?" He asks around a dry throat.   
  
  
"We figured out who was working at the police station in Izaya-nii's hometown at the time Izaya-nii was killing people, and contacted the ones still there to figure out who ran the investigations!" The girl chirps like it's as simple as breathing.   
  
  
Shizuo takes a minute to process the fact that this  _ kid  _ managed to trace him like it was no problem.   
  
  
"Now, help us find him~?" The girl beams, producing a large wad of bills from her bag. Shizuo swallows the lump in his throat to reply,   
  
  
"Okay, kid. But you can't kill him. Get him turned into the cops, yes, but murder is out of the question."   
  
  
"Alrighty Detective Heiwajima-san~! Can we work with you to find him??" The girl slaps the heap of money down on his battered wooden desk, clapping her hands together.   
  
  
"I need to know your names if I'm going to be 'working' with you...." Shizuo is reluctant, but he tries not to show it.    
  
  
"Orihara Mairu, and this is my sister, Orihara Kururi~" The glasses-clad girl chirps, and the quiet one raises a hand in a lazy wave.   
  
  
"W..well then, Mairu-san, Kururi-san, I'll try and dig up some basic info on your brother and where he could be, please come back tomorrow if you can," Shizuo sighs. The girls nod, leaving surprisingly without resistance.   
  
  
With a tired sigh, Shizuo turns to his ancient desktop computer that clunks away under his desk even trying to do simple things. He doesn't care much for technology, and this thing is the genuine worst.   
  
  
The computer whirs and clunks angrily as it starts up the chatroom program.   
  
  
_ Heiwa has entered the chatroom. _ __   
__   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ Orihara Izaya is here. he's in the same damn town as me. so are his apparent half sisters. _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ (・∀・) _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Ara, ara~~ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Now isn't this interesting?? _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ And now you've messaged me twice in one day, I feel so useful~~ ☆ _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ chrome, listen to me. I don't want you interacting with him. he's incredibly dangerous, and you could get hurt, or worse.... _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Aaah, it's so nice that Shizuo-san protects me~~ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Could it be you're worried I'll be killed~? _ __   
__   
**_Heiwa:_ ** _ I just don't want my only informant getting hurt. don't read that much into it. _ __   
__   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Whatever you say, Shizuo-san~ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Aaaanyways~ ☆☆ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ I'm guessing you were just warning me, so I'll go now~ _ __   
**_Chrome:_ ** _ Bye byeee~! _ __   
__   
_ Chrome has left the chatroom. _ __   
__   
_ Heiwa has left the chatroom. _   
  
  
Shizuo closes the chatroom, and tiredly lays his head down on his desk.   
  
  
"Shizuo? You okay?" A calm yet cheery male voice asks, one that nearly lifts his spirits.   
  
  
"Ah... yeah, I'm alright, Tom-san...." Shizuo responds, obviously not alright.   
  
  
"Gloomy again?" Tom's always casual voice asks. He doesn't know about Shizuo's past, since he's kept him in the dark on purpose. He doesn't want to worry him....   
  
  
"I guess so...." Shizuo mumbles, barely lifting his heavy head at the sound of his office door swinging open.   
  
  
"Chin up," Tom smiles, setting something down on Shizuo's desk. A single serving pudding cup, the sugary caramelized treat barely lifting his spirits, but allowing him to pretend his "gloominess" is cured and smile.   
  
  
"Thank you, Tom-san, I dunno what I'd do without you...." Shizuo gives a weak smile as he opens the little plastic container of what is essentially pure sugar, the top of the package letting off a soft  _ pop _ . "Someday I'll pay you back for all the pudding," He laughs lightly, though it's forced.   
  
  
"Shizuo, don't worry about that. It's seriously payment enough to not see you moping," Tom jokes.   
  
  
Shizuo nods absently, eating his gift as he scrolls through pages on his clunking old PC, trying to find info on this man Orihara claims to be, to see if he's given the alias a life. Tom seems to get that he wants to work quietly, and leaves with a parent-esque smile on his face. Shizuo barely notices, working and taking notes, also bothering to research conspiracy theories about Orihara's "disappearance" two years ago so he can see what Chrome is always harping on about. None of the theories are very believable, all ridiculous, but thinking of Orihara's cocky, bloodied face that day causes him to close out those pages fairly fast when he starts visualising those splatters of blood hitting fresh snow, and Orihara's taunts, the painful echo of his handgun firing.   
  
  
He snaps out of the hole he was slipping down, feeling now violently ill and not much like he'll be able to keep down the minimal food he's eaten today. "I-I think I'm going to head home early, I'm feeling a little under the weather...." He calls tiredly as he trudges out of his office. The floor almost sways beneath his feet and he has to shove thoughts out of his head to even resemble walking normally.   
  
  
Shizuo tiredly walks down the street towards home. He knows he's feeling like a wreck when he genuinely considers drinking as he passes the alley that leads to this town's only bar. But he won't be able to put his all into catching Orihara before he can hurt someone if he's in a bar by mid afternoon.   
  
  
"Heiwajima-san! Heiwajima-san!" Shizuo whips around in a split second, seeing the wheelchair bound Orihara waving to him. He shudders as he's approached, but he's unable to move from fear.    
  
  
"A-ah, Okawa-san.... I actually wanted to speak to you...."    
  
  
_ Maybe I can trip him up by talking about how I have to catch Orihara to his face... I hope.... _   
  
  
"Oh, go ahead~"    
  
  
"Are you familiar with Orihara Izaya? That wealthy man in Tokyo who disappeared a few years back?" He keeps his tone level and professional, palms uncomfortably sweaty and face pale.   
  
  
"O-oh," Orihara laughs, gaze darting from left to right, "I believe I do. A lot of people believe he was murdered, you know~"   
  
  
"I am aware of that, Okawa-san, however, I had two girls, about 17 years old, come to me claiming to be related to him. They believe he's alive, and want me to find him," Shizuo does get a sick burst of cheer from seeing Orihara twist anxiously with that cool mask slipping from his face. He deserves it though, so he doesn't feel bad backing him into the corner.   
  
  
"Oh, I see~ I hope they don't meet an... unfortunate end.... I heard that happened to people associated with those investigating the Orihara case back in Ikebukuro~" Orihara regains his cool, now being the one backing Shizuo into a corner.   
  
  
"I...I hope for their safety as well," Shizuo stiffens, his throat feeling dry as he's at a loss for subtle counters to floor him with. It's impossible for him to keep a level mind when Orihara is quite obviously reminding him of... He tenses before the thought can end. "I apologize, Okawa-san, but I n-need to go. I think I'm coming down with something and I don't want you catching it," He smiles uneasily.    
  
  
"Ah, what a shame... I was enjoying this, too. Until next time, Heiwajima-san!" Orihara waves as Shizuo tries not to back off too hastily before rushing away once out of sight.   
  
  
Shizuo walks away at a bordering on suspicious pace, feeling as if his legs might give out at any second. That bastard.... He's messing with his head, burrowing into his mind like a bug and digging out things without saying a suspicious word aloud. He jolts back to reality, groaning at the sudden pain of having hit his shoulder against a wall rounding a corner in his hurry to get home.   
  
  
"I'm home...." He calls tiredly as he enters his home, removing his shoes. Thunder rumbles lowly outside.   
  
  
"I assume you were feeling "under the weather"," Vorona looks up from her book where she's slouched on the sofa, books piled up around her.   
  
  
"You know me too well," Shizuo gives a melancholic smile, slowly lifting a cigarette to his lips and lights it, deeply breathing in till he feels that buzz then calm feeling, quietly taking a seat at the kitchen table. "I was right, Orihara is back...." He murmurs, rubbing at the dark circles under the eyes.    
  
  
"Do you require assistance in apprehending him--"   
  
  
"No! Vorona, please, please, I don't want help with this, not when you could get hurt...." Shizuo's hand hits the table with a slam.   
  
  
"Affirmative. I understand. It is most likely Orihara-san will kill to get your attention or to frame you for what he's done," Vorona nods gravely, cleaning her reading glasses on the hem of her shirt.    
  
  
"He's most likely going to start with someone I've never met to attract my attention and set me on edge...." He remembers Orihara's strategy of two years ago, and doesn't want to finish describing it. He scribbles down a brief note on Orihara's killing strategy, assuming he'll take a similar one this time. That's just the kind of sick person he is....   
  
  
"Then he'll attempt to take down someone you care about. I assume me or your boss. Or that woman who gives you all your information," Vorona sounds surprisingly not jealous as she speaks of Chrome.   
  
  
"I warned Chrome about Orihara, I'll tell Tom-san at work tomorrow.... I guess it's finally time he learns about my "gloominess"...." He stands slowly, "Night, 'Rona...."   
  
  
"If you require a meal when you wake up, I will most likely be awake a while," Vorona returns quietly to her book, and Shizuo walks to the bedroom, crawling into bed without a sound.   
  
  
_ There's someone backed against the wall of a cheap motel, they should be able to fight against someone with legs this shaky. This person with his face silhouetted in a late night shadow, his sharp smirk glinting. _ __   
__   
__   
_ The victim, someone androgynous, pulls and struggles more aggressively at the sight of a knife glinting in streetlights. Their efforts are to no avail, and the knife digs deep, piercing their insides and splattering blood onto the attacker's dark colored coat. The knife twists in the attacker's ring-wearing, slender hand, seeming to burst the person's insides in a gory show as their life expires. _ __   
__   
__   
_ The shaky legged, smirking killer yanks out the knife, allowing the gouge to spurt and burst with crimson. He laughs as he seats himself back in a high quality wheelchair he was temporarily able to abandon. _ __   
__   
__   
_ "Your sacrifice will be worth it for Hei-chan's reaction, I'll have you know." _ __   
__   
__   
_ "I never thought a monster's reactions would be on par with a human's.... But they're even better...." _ __   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup end a chapter with currently mystery person murder. Yep. Good plot kickstarter right there. That's what that... is.... who am I kidding that probably came out of nowhere ;; Also so sorry I took so long to write this!! I've been really busy and it sucks. Sorry;;;


	3. Timer

_The clock ticks on your safety, Hei-chan. And ticks even faster on that of your loved ones._ _  
__  
__  
__I wonder if the clock on your waning stability will tick away faster the more I do to shorten your timer._ _  
__  
__  
__Now that I'll have your attention soon...._ _  
__  
__  
__Now the fun can begin. And my own timer will start._ _  
__  
__  
__The one that counts down till you realize that you are the monster._  
  
  
Eyes ringed with a muddy purple of tiredness, Shizuo takes a slow drag from the cigarette held in his hand. The waning cancer stick's little spark goes out, so he shuts the window, keeping out the bitter air that's coming in. 7:13 at night. He turns the TV on to see the news, eyes as round and wide as dinner plates at what he sees.  
  
  
The news of a teenage boy, Kuronuma Aoba, being killed is displayed on the news. The report describes the boy's body as being found with a note in hand, a note simply reading "monster".  
  
  
Shizuo knows immediately that this is Orihara's work. He would've known without the note, but that just guarantees it. This kid was killed to get his attention, and that's it. How fucking sick....  
  
  
If Orihara is beginning his killings, it'd be best to..... He stands, going to his computer.  
  
  
_Heiwa has entered the chatroom._ _  
__  
__  
_**_Heiwa:_** _Chrome. I need to tell you something. Please, get online._ _  
__  
__Chrome has entered the chatroom._ _  
__  
_**_Chrome:_** _Shizuo-san is something wrong? I can't talk long_  
  
  
Shizuo reads and rereads Chrome's message. It doesn't sound like Chrome at all.... _Did someone take over her account? No, I shouldn't be calling Chrome a her, I don't actually know what they are.... That's not important..... Stop focusing on useless little things._   
  
  
**_Heiwa:_** _chrome, Izaya is killing again. he's following the same sort of system he did the last time I was trying to catch him. that means he'll try to hurt people close to me next._ _  
_**_Heiwa:_** _I just want you to be safe, please_ _  
__  
_**_Chrome:_** _Thank you, Shizuo-san_ _  
__  
__  
__Chrome has left the chatroom._ _  
__  
__  
__Heiwa has left the chatroom._  
  
  
Shizuo stares blankly at his screen. Hearing-- seeing Chrome act like that just made him worry more.... God.... He leans back in his chair, rubbing his temples. The TV mumbles on in the background.  
  
  
"Shizuo," Vorona's emotionless, clear voice comes from the bedroom doorway, making his gaze snap towards her.   
  
  
"Jesus, 'Rona, you scared the hell out of me," He laughs to lower the tension, but even he-- especially he-- knows how forced it is.  
  
  
"I apologize. I was coming to advise you to rest, and to ask if you've eaten today," Vorona quietly walks up to him. The low rumble of thunder draws their attention to the window, where rain has begun to fall outside.  
  
  
Even that soft rushing and rumbling of the storm, in the context of having Orihara on his mind, it reminds him of.... no.... He looks down, finding that he's shaking.   
  
  
"Shizuo... Rest," Vorona suddenly encourages, snapping him back to reality.  
  
  
"Y...yeah. Thanks...." Shizuo is barely able to stagger his way into their sparse bedroom, and he falls into unconsciousness the instant his head hits the pillow.  
  
  
He wakes up grasping at the sheets, his face damp with a cold sweat. The rainstorm from early last night goes on still, and his alarm clock reading 4:43 A.M. The alarm itself is yet to sound.  
  
  
His hand goes to touch his cold face, and he finds himself tracing the starved, sharp features he's grown to have, how sunken his face must look. He silently looks down at the sleeping Vorona beside him, a book beside her as always, before standing from bed.  
  
  
Passing his laptop on the way to the kitchen, Shizuo has no chat alerts. Chrome hasn't logged in since last night.... He's getting worried. What if Orihara....  
  
  
No. Never in a million years. Chrome will be fine. They have to be. Shizuo slams the fridge, milk bottle in hand as he eats-- or drinks-- his insignificant breakfast. He'll go give Orihara a talking to.... Let him know that he has him figured out. He just really, _really_ hopes it works. Setting the empty bottle on the table, he pulls on his shoes, not bothering to change into a less rumpled set of clothes, and heads out.  
  
  
"Heiwajima-san~!" A voice meets his ears after he's been walking a minute, and he whips around in a split second to see Orihara there.   
  
  
"Okawa-san, did you really have to scare me like that?" He breathes out, somewhere between scared and mad, with a light dash of paranoia in there as well.   
  
  
"Ah, I apologize~" Orihara's assistant isn't with him, at least, the usual one isn't. A skittish teenage girl with short, light brown hair is with him. Her eyes seem to widen with alarm at the sight of Shizuo.   
  
  
He sighs, hoping that it could just be nothing, a mere coincidence.  
  
  
It's never a fucking coincidence. He knows this, but his stupid denial goes on. Stupid and cowardly denial that's just there to prolong his sanity and keep it dancing on a thin string for just a little longer.  
  
  
His eyes snap open wide from their half shut position of thought when he remembers a girl who looked just like this girl. She'd worn a modest maid outfit, and he only ever saw her hurrying in and out of rooms in Orihara's mansion with fear and purpose, primarily the former.  
  
  
_So this bastard's roped his old staff into coming with him. He'll probably end up sacrificing them to catch my attention with front page headlines and discovered bodies…. the fucking scumshit._  
  
  
"Who is this, Okawa-san? Not your usual assistant, I see," He feigns a smile, hoping to maybe, just a bit, ease out some of the girl's fear. Like he could do that, actually help someone who's bound to die by Orihara and most likely knows it.  
  
  
"Mikajima Saki, and you must be... Detective Heiwajima Shizuo, yes...?" The girl manages a very similar feigned and light smile, and Shizuo nods his answer. The girl's speaking style is familiar, but he doesn't think he knows it from her history as Orihara's made, since she never uttered a word back then. It sounds like...  
  
  
_No, she can't be Chrome, since the informant has only acted the way they acted this morning since, well, this morning. There's no way their personality would've flipped that drastically in most likely less than a day, and Chrome seems too tech savvy to be hacked..._ _  
__  
__  
__Unless..._ _  
__  
__  
__Unless Chrome's previous cheeriness was all a facade to keep him from being worried, since they work for Izaya...._ _  
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__  
__That's ridiculous. Chrome must've just been spooked by something today, they're most likely fine._  
  
  
"Oh no, what's the matter, Heiwajima-san, you look troubled," Orihara suddenly interrupts, seemingly able to tell that the wheels in Shizuo's head have been turning away.  
  
  
"Nothing. I'm v-very sorry, Okawa-san, but I have to be going. Work and all...." Shizuo trails off, before briskly resuming his walk as if he wants to shake off the interaction.  
  
  
During his workday, he repeatedly considers contacting the Orihara girls, and notifying them that due to reasons he can't give, he'll have to drop their case. Working actively to "track down" Orihara is taking its toll on him, and it's obvious as all hell.  
  
  
He won't drop the case though, because Orihara's arrest will be beneficial to him too. It'll help a lot of people....  
  
  
His workday is a blur of research, until he's just about to head out late in the evening, and in swaggers Orihara-- that's not really something one could do in a wheelchair, but somehow he does it, cocky as always.   
  
  
Tired and particularly mentally drained, Shizuo, no filter on his mouth, mutters, "Orihara...."  
  
  
He realizes his mistake, and pretends it was intentional. _I-I-I can... I can catch him if I just confront him headfirst. You can do this._  
  
  
"Heiwajima-san, whatever has gotten into you?" Orihara almost scoffs.  
  
  
"Drop the fucking crap... Orihara Izaya," He snarls, deep and predatory out of his throat.  
  
  
Orihara starts to laugh, a high, wavering manic giggle. It's a touch nervous, but mostly a "you're a nutjob" sort of laugh with the childishly delighted over everything Orihara spin. "I think you've been feeding yourself far too many conspiracies, Heiwajima-san. What's next, I'm secretly an alien?"  
  
  
_No, damn it! It's not working, he's not cracking!_ His palms are sticky with sweat as he tries to formulate his next reply to Orihara. "I know the monster who took someone I care for from me when I see him...." His snarl comes out more like the wavering fearful yip of a puppy than the fearsome growl of a guard dog, and just makes Orihara cackle.  
  
  
"If you were talking like this out in the street, you'd be spending time in that cozy little mental institution up in Tokyo, where the delusional wrecks of the surrounding area are sent. White walls and that's all, maybe then you'd have nothing to feed your delusions," His lips arch up into a grin, that awful, familiar, Orihara grin, "I did not kill anyone, and I never have, Heiwajima-san."  
  
  
Shizuo's been hit to the floor by his own helplessness. He wants to fuckng _cry_. There's nothing he can change about Orihara, his attempt to make him confess failed harder than anything he's ever done, and Orihara could easily tell anyone he wanted about his "delusions".   
  
  
He continues to push on though, like the goddamn idiot he's been all his life.   
  
  
But as he's about to continue, he stops short, leaving Orihara waiting expectantly. "I apologize. I haven't slept well this week, I guess it's going to my head more than I figured."  
  
  
Orihara seems nearly offended that he's not putting up a a fight at all. _Kasuka wouldn't want me avenging his death in the first place, so.... so I have to at least do it in a way that... that wouldn't make him worry, if he can see me...._  
  
  
"Not going to even follow up your delusions with evidence?" Orihara scoffs, "I guess you really don't have any pr--"  
  
  
"One last thing," Shizuo forces out, "How did you injure your legs?" _This has to get him._  
  
  
That catches Orihara, leaving him grabbing for words in his mind for a solid minute. A minute that seems to go on too long for both of them.  
  
  
"Do you really think that's any of your business?" Orihara is bristling like an angered cat, and with a polite but very very forced smile, he wheels out, leaving Shizuo to be both shaken up from Orihara's threats, and naively cocky that he got a slip up out of the unbreakable.  
  
  
He gets back to his work with a renewed sense of purpose, one that can only last for so long....  
  
  
_Grabbing for something to help herself stand, the petite and pitiful girl with short hair writhes on the wooden floor, her freshly spilled blood seeping down between the floorboards, leaving her attacker thinking nothing of it, since he has people he can make clean it up._ _  
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__"You knew you wouldn't get away with it. I could tell even a man as stupid as my little monster knew you weren't his "Chrome-chan"," Knife plunges deep, ripping fatal punctures into the victim's intestines as a scream rips from her strained vocal chords, her nails digging into the floor as her movements are reduced to twitching at the knife of the red eyed attacker._ _  
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__"You've failed me in every conceivable way...." The attacker snarls, but there's an air of happiness. He wanted his miserable maid to fail._ _  
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__Since, after all, now she's an extra bit of bait for the monster's false detective case._ _  
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__And the monster always has loved his detective work. Perceptive brat with anger issues. Hasn't changed for the whole of his life, at least, the parts where he's been able to observe the monster._ _  
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_  
_A larger portion of his life than even the perceptive monster who almost caught him two years ago knows._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> owo whats this its a new chapter. Aghhhhh I'm sorry I took so long to update thisss I feel bad (worse than I do about what I do to the characters in this fic;;;)

**Author's Note:**

> IT'S BACK!!!! Finally. Poor Shizuo can't catch a goddamn break still though. This poor guy honestly. But then again I think I'm less mean to him than people who write Izayacentric are to Izaya. I was planning to start the sequel in February, but unfortunately writer's block is ass. I also tend to get like title-ers block???? Idk maybe I'm bad at titling things *shrugs*.
> 
> Anyways please give feedback ^^ I hope I've improved since writing the first fic!!


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